The Dresden Files > DF Spoilers
Elaine, Trojan Horse? "It was the knife..."
Avernite:
--- Quote from: Kindler on October 24, 2019, 04:47:56 PM ---I personally believe that Maeve was Infected between Grave Peril and Summer Knight. I don't think we've ever seen an uncompromised Maeve.
Nemesis didn't have enough time to break down her Fae restrictions (she still couldn't outright lie, for example), but was influencing her actions.
No way to know that for certain, of course, but, in my opinion, it fits. And I think she's definitely Infected by the time we see her in Proven Guilty, because what she says about Mab is patently untrue (and she looks like she's getting a dizzying high when she says it).
--- End quote ---
Proven Guilty absolutely, but in Summer Knight Maeve is still active on the side of Winter doing what she's supposed to (obviously, smacking Summer is a lot more the fun part of being Winter Lady), rather than on the side of Nemesis helping Aurora succeed. She could've just let Harry's party struggle and fail alone, rather than helping them out in a bind.
Mira:
Question, how long after the infection takes place that symptoms begin to show? Summer Knight takes place a month or more after Grave Peril, yet though she is wearing it in her belt Lea seems perfectly sane. Also Cat Sith seemed sane until suddenly he wasn't. So Maeve still could have been infected as of Summer Knight and had no symptoms, and if you can believe Mab really didn't show any until she was too far gone for Mab to help her.
Slightly off topic, but not, Lily. At the end of Summer Knight Lily is this sweet innocent girl who suddenly finds herself the Summer Lady. We hear nothing bad about her until Cold Days then supposedly Maeve was able to bad mouth her into believing the worst about just about everything and willing to go along with blowing everything up. Maeve's silver tongue? Or did Lily become infected from contact with Maeve? Which makes the most sense? I go for the latter because I find it hard that someone like Lily could be convinced and changed by Maeve.
Back to Elaine, if she is a Trojan Horse, she managed to infect directly or indirectly both Courts, first and second line of defense against what is beyond the Gates.
morriswalters:
From a Doylist perspective, fourteen books in, what purpose is served by having Mab be wrong about how Maeve was infected? All the vectors are dead, save Lea.
Mira:
--- Quote from: morriswalters on October 24, 2019, 06:59:44 PM ---From a Doylist perspective, fourteen books in, what purpose is served by having Mab be wrong about how Maeve was infected? All the vectors are dead, save Lea.
--- End quote ---
Mab thinks the problem is solved because the source of the infection has been found, the Knife. But if she is wrong, the real source, Elaine is still alive and potentially causing trouble.
Okay, fasten down your tin foil hats ladies and gents, it is going to be a bumpy ride... ::)
Using your Doylist perspective, the books are about balance, Summer Court verses Winter Court etc.. I remember a word of Jim from long ago that suggested the possibility of two star children, Justin adopted Harry and Elaine the theory goes is to gain two star children to use for his own purpose, i.e. enforcers. Or he thought for his own purpose, but there are hints that he was betrayed.. What if Justin was merely a cat's paw? He was used to raise up and trained these two
powerful wizards possibly star children to be enforcers. However to balance the forces i.e. the Courts, the White Council etc, only one star child is needed... So that fateful day when Harry came home early from school the master plan was about to be set into motion.. Elaine, successfully enthralled, malleable for the plan.. Harry resists enthralling, not useful for the master plan.. Harry always believed that Justin had sent HWB to kill him, but after his reliving it in Ghost Story he is no longer so sure that this was the case.. So why did he survive? We'll get back to that in a moment..
He does survive, blows up HWB, goes to his godmother, who happens to be a powerful noble of Winter, gets some confidence goes back to save Elaine, kills Justin in a fair fight.. Elaine says she
freaked and ran off to the Summer Court for protection.. Was she still enthralled? What was drilled into her by Justin while Harry was off getting juiced up by Lea? Elaine carries the infection to Aurora etc, etc, etc..... Balance is all screwed up, or that was the plan..
It failed because Harry survived, he is the star child who has power over Outsiders, because his mom fell in love with Malcolm, it gives him the power to influence Elaine so she helped him to get to Aurora when all she wanted to do was run and the consequences be damned....
morriswalters:
The problem is unsolvable. No matter who did what, once the Adversary was inside, it was inside. This is a known risk. It's why the Gatekeeper exists. In terms of balance, it's one of the main themes of Cold Days. The ending represents the first time since Summer Knight that Winter has all it's slots filled.
I don't know what I think about Elaine.
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